'It's better if you have longer to recover...' But Murray won't blame scheduling for loss

Andy Murray refused to blame the scheduling for his painful Australian Open final defeat but did call on tournament organisers to review their policy of playing the semi-finals on different days.

Murray obviously felt the strain of his draining semi-final against Roger Federer. The four-hour match finished late on Friday night and that gave the Scot 24 hours’ less time to recover from his match in the last four than Djokovic enjoyed.

Murray, who suffered with a blistered toe and stiff hamstring during the final, said: ‘That’s something for the tournament to look at. The US Open have made some adjustments with the scheduling (putting a day between the semis and final) to try to make it easier for the players to recover.

Beaten: Andy Murray had no answer to Novak Djokovic's onslaught in the third and fourth sets

‘Sometimes the scheduling works for you, sometimes it doesn’t. Sometimes I’ve had luck with that, sometimes it has gone the other way. Anyone who watches the game, or any other sport, will know that, if you have longer to recover from matches, then it’s better, obviously.

‘I had no taping on my foot during Roger’s match and then I had it on today, but 90 per cent of the players will have some blister problem. It’s part and parcel of playing these big events against the best players in the world.’

Towards the end of a match of long rallies that lasted three hours and 40 minutes, Murray slowed slightly against an opponent who had made light work of David Ferrer on Thursday.

Hampered? Murray had treatment for blisters and was clearly in discomfort as he lost to Djokovic

Although the schedule is designed
more to maximise ticket and TV revenue rather than cater for fairness,
Murray had no complaint about the result, which could have been
different if he had taken chances in the second set.

‘The last six months have been the
best tennis of my life. I made the Wimbledon final, won the Olympics and
US Open and I was close here as well,’ said the relatively upbeat
Murray, who has grown in stature since Ivan Lendl (right) became his
coach last year. ‘Nobody has ever won a Slam straight after winning
their first one, it’s not the easiest thing to do and I got extremely
close.

Force: Djokovic was too good in the end for Murray as the Brit was forced to settle for the runners-up trophy

‘I think I’m going in the right
direction. It’s the first time I’ve beaten Roger in a major and I felt
more comfortable on the court tonight than at the US Open.

‘Before that final I was unbelievably
nervous and was doubting myself a lot. Today I felt pretty calm from
the beginning. The first few times I played for a Grand Slam I struggled
with the whole thing. This felt a lot better.’

Both players acknowledged the result
hinged on just a few moments, particularly early in the second set, that
Djokovic managed to rescue.

Champion: Djokovic claimed his fourth Australian Open title with the four-set win

The world No 1, who became the first
man to win three straight Australian Opens since Roy Emerson in the
1960s, said: ‘I just felt mentally lighter and more confident on court
after that. All our matches in the last three years have been decided by
a very few points and I don’t think this was different. I tried to be
more aggressive and go for my shots in the third and fourth sets.

Missed chances: Murray won the first set but failed to take three break points early in the second

‘Winning this will give me a lot of confidence for the rest of the year.’

The next tournament where the two players could meet is the Masters event at Indian Wells, California, in early March.

Fighter: Djokovic was on the ropes in the opening part of the match but he eventually wore Murray down